Pulping and finishing machine



Patented Jan. 3, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFliCE PULPING AND FINISHING MACHINE Stacey B. Lindley, Indianapolis, Ind., assignor to Indiana Canning .Machinery Company, In-

dianapolis, Ind., a corporation Application March 13, 1937, Serial No. 130,643

4 Claims. (01. 146-174) This invention relates to machines for pulping and forces the pulp through the machine without of tomatoes, pumpkin, vegetables and various cutting the fibres. To this end, it provides a fruits, and with slight modification is also applidragging and squeezing action, as distinguished cable for finishing of the pulp therefrom. from a cutting and breaking action. This is One feature of the invention resides in the most important as a thicker and more desirable 5 construction of the crusher having serrated edges appe P p is thereby Obtained on one side, which revolves at high speed. The Other features of the invention reside in the crusher is mounted on the drive shaft in assotruncated cone screen having its reduced end at ciation with the receiving hopper of the mathe intake and its enlarged end at the discharge.

hine t, an angle for r i ing d crushing the This results in the material being moved toward 1:)

material and propelling it forward into the th d sc a end of t machine by the P screen. The serrated, edges have the advantage effecting more even distribution over all parts of mascerating the material to be pulped, thus of the screen, so that the wear thereon will be conditioning it for more ready pulping in the more uniform. This has the eifect of increasscreen ing the life of the screen and preventing ex- 1"" Another feature of the invention re ides in cessive localized loads, tending to rupture it. The the provision of a unitary paddle assembly rotat- Swlrflllnding With the assoc ated disable in the screen which may be readily removed Charge D for the p and juice P ng throu through one end thereof longitudinally of the h re mpr a n ra casting on- Screen as a it, forming to the truncated cone shape of the screen 20 Another feature of the machine resides in the s that th s r n may be ad y inserted adjustability of the paddles which are more eifecu h h large d t e eo W thout the necestive when capable of adjustment in three ways y of Providing v d Sec ns, as in the usual due to changing conditions of the material or construction. The enlarged end 01'' the casing various types of material to be pulped, These into which the screen is inserted is closed by a 25 changes and adjustments should be quickly made single end casting which includes the end thrust t t dismantling th hi so as n t t bearing for the shaft, as well as the discharge hold up the continuous production during the Spout for Fu ces e n, Th e djustment include the 1 ar- The full nature of the invention will be underance of the paddles, the angular lead of the stood from the accompanying drawing and the 30 paddles and the speed of rotation. By means following description a d C a ms. of this invention, the clearance of the paddles 1 is d GVa n 0f the c e Showmay be adjusted exteriorly of the screen by longiing parts thereof in central vertical section. t di l adjustment of the shaft a d unitary Fig. 2 is an elevation of the discharge end of the paddle assembly mounted thereon with respect ne- Fig. 3 is a section of the drive shaft 35 to the screen while the machine is in operation. With the longitudinal adj e sm and The screen as shown herein, being in the formof bearing suppo being ShOWn in Central vertical truncated cone, longitudinal mov e t of th section. Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line paddle unit will have the effect of increasing or f 5 is a modified form Sh 40 decreasing the clearance between the paddles and t n f a portion of the machine w t the 4.0

the screen. With respect to the adjustment of intake end adapted to a fi the angular lead of the paddles, wherein the In e (Ira-Wing there is illustrated a p p front or intake ends thereof are set ahead of the and finishing machine having the usua frame rear or discharge ends, this is effected by having S pp in W vthere is provided a bearing 4.5 one spider or set of paddle supporting arms s pp ll through which the dr ve shaft I2 rotatably adjustable with respect to the other sl and ata ly x n ar y the drive set. Set screws are provided for effecting the P y Is On the outer end therefi. FiXedly d rotary adjustment to vary the lead of the paddles, permanently p-p ed 0n the frame supp "1 preferably at the discharge end of the machine there is a solidly castor otherwise formed unitary which is easily accessible. hood I4 having a body portion of truncated cone 50 Another feature of the machine resides in the shape .and a bottom portion in the form of a disprovision of an angularly disposed flange along charge hopper l5. Said hood is thus formedto the edge of the-paddles adjacent the screen, such completely enclose the pulping section of the as will produce a wedging action of the material machine and being of solid or continuous conbeing pulped. This action squeezes the material struction prevents any leakage, and further has 55 the effect of keeping the outside air from having contact with the pulp that has passed through the perforated screen to be hereinafter described. The intake end of the machine comprises a. casting including a packing gland portion I6 for the shaft l2 and an intake hopper ll. The discharge end of the machine is closed by an end casting [8 having a supporting bearing l9 and a discharge spout 20, said end casting being removably secured to the machine by the wing nuts 2 I.

Slidably and removably mounted in the ma-.

chine there is a screen assembly which is of truncated cone shape to conform with the shape of the machine. Said assembly comprises a plurality of longitudinal supporting bars 22 secured to the annular reinforcement rings 23 for supporting the screen 24. Adjacent the forward end of the screen assembly and secured interiorly thereof there is an apertured partition 25. With the end casting l8 removed, the screen assembly may be readily inserted into the hood so that the forward end fits and seats upon a suitable retaining shoulder provided in the intake end casting.

The shaft [2 extends centrally within the hood and screen, being supported in the bearings II and I9. Adjacent the packing gland l6 and in the hopper I! there is provided a feed screw section 26 which is immediately followed by a crusher 21 in the form of a two-bladed impeller provided with serrated edges 28. For adjusting the shaft l2 longitudinally of the machine, the hearing I l is provided with an externally threaded sleeve 29 upon which an internally threaded collar 36 is adapted to screw which is provided with a hand wheel 3| (see Fig. 3). The collar 30 embraces a ball bearing assembly 32 having an inner race secured and locked to the shaft. The sleeve 29 is fixed to the frame of the machine through the bearing 1 I. The collar 3!! is longitudinally fixed through the ball bearing assembly 32 to the shaft. Rotation of the hand wheel 3| causes longitudinal adjustment between the collar and sleeve and thereby effects corresponding 1ongitudinal adjustment between the shaft and bearing H.

With the end casting l8 removed and the screen assembly in place, the paddle assembly may be inserted within the screen and secured for rotation to the shaft I2. The paddle assembly comprises a longitudinally extending hub 33 which is keyed to the shaft at 34 and is provided at the reduced or intake end with a rigid spider formed of integral radially-extending arms 35 At the opposite or discharge end there is provided a similar spider comprising radially-extending arms 35, which, however, are rotatable independently of the hub 33. The paddles 31 are secured to the corresponding ends of the respective arms 35 and 36, the arms 36 being longer than the arms 35 so that the paddles are arranged in the general form of the screen. Through the screw adjustments 38 the paddles may be set to have the desired average or normal clearance between their outer edges and the inner surface of the screen. To adjust the lead or pitch of the paddles, the hub 33 is provided with a yoke at the discharge end, having four arms 39, as illustrated in Fig. 4, through which the adjusting screws 40 extend for engaging and clamping therebetween the projections 4| on the arms 36. By means of this adjustment and the setting of the screws 40 any relative rotational adjustment betweenthe arms 36 and the arms 35 may be effected within limits. This permits of such adjustment of the rear spider as to affect the lead of the paddles, depending upon the character of the product being processed. This adjustment is readily accessible merely by removal of the nuts 2| and end casting l8.

As is illustrated in Fig. 4, the Outer and effective edges of the paddles are provided with rearwardly extending flanges 42 extending outwardly at an angle to the tangent of the arc of rotation. Said flanges may have a straight surface as illustrated or may be curved to the same substantial effect, to the end that the pulp may be wedged between the angular or sloping surface of the flange and the screen so as to be squeezed therebetween.

In the modified form shown in Fig. 5, the structure above described is the same, excepting that the intake end casting is changed and the apertured partition 25 is removed. The intake end casting of Fig. 5 is adapted for use on a finisher and comprises an intake II! to which a pipe may be connected for introducing the pulp for the finishing operation, the pulp being directly discharged thereby into the screen section and distributed thereabout by a baffle plate I25 which is secured to and rotated by the shaft l2. In assembly, the shaft and intake end casting form a permanent part of the structure, together with the frame it and the hood I4 with its pan 55. All of the other parts are removably mounted in connection therewith. The crusher 21 is removably secured upon the shaft I2. Then the screen assembly is inserted about the shaft and within the hood. The screen has removably mounted therein for insertion the apertured plate 25. After mounting of the screen the paddle assembiy is slipped on over the shaft to position for obtaining the approximate or normal clearance for the screen and thereupon locked to the shaft. The paddles are adjusted to give the desired lead, after which the end casting I8 is locked in place by the wing nuts 2|. In operation, depending upon the results obtained, the clearance of the paddles may be further adjusted by the hand wheel 3| while the mechanism is in operation, or their angular position may be further adjusted by removing the end casting l8 and adjusting the set screws 40. For dismantling and cleaning, the reverse operation would take place.

The material is received through the hopper and broken up by the crusher 21, particularly through the medium of the serrated edge 28. Those parts which are small enough may then pass through the apertures in the plates 25, and those that are too large may remain to be further broken up and crushed by the crusher. The truncated cone form of screen will thereupon cause the material to be evenly distributed throughout its length as it is being processed and crushed by the wedging action of the flanges 42 of the paddles. The fibrous pulp and juice will be forced through the screen by the wedging action of the flanges 42 to pass into the discharge pan l 5. Both the distribution of the material through the length of the screen and the final discharge of the pomace through the spout 20 in the end casting l8 will be effected by the angular position of the paddles 31 adjusted to vary the speed of travel through the machine by the adjusting screws 40. The effect of the processing, mainly depending upon the product desired and the character of the material used, is controlled through the clearance between the paddles and screen as adjusted by the hand wheel 3|. The same applies to the finisher illustrated in Fig. 5, other than that there is nocrushing required and the paddles may be longer and the screen of finer mesh.

The invention claimed is:

l. A processing machine of the character described comprising a stationary screen of greater diameter at one end than the other in the form of a truncated cone, a shaft extending horizontally and axially through said screen, means for driving said shaft, a series of paddles having their outer edges extending substantially longitudinally of said screen and equally spaced therefrom, said paddles extending at an angle to said shaft and rotatable thereby with respect to said screen, a plurality of fixed bearings for slidably and rotatably supporting said shaft, a threaded sleeve se cured to one of said bearings intermediate the ends of said shaft, an intermediate bearing longitudinally fixed to said shaft adjacent said sleeve, and a rotatable collar screw threaded on said sleeve and secured to said last-mentioned bearing for moving it and said shaft longitudinally upon rotation thereof while the machine is in operation.

2. A processing machine of the character described comprising an elongated screen circular in cross section, a shaft extending axially of said screen, means for rotating said shaft, a plurality of crushing paddles mounted upon and rotated by said shaft and extending longitudinally of said screen in crushing relation therewith, a set of radial arms having their outer ends secured to said paddles adjacent one end thereof and a set of corresponding arms spaced therefrom and secured to said paddles adjacent their opposite ends, a hub surrounding and secured to said shaft connected with one set of arms and extending to the other set of arms, and means on said hub for adjustably connecting said last-mentioned arms therewith in rotative adjustment with said firstmentioned arms.

3. A processing machine of the character described comprising an elongated screen circular in cross section, a shaft extending axially of said screen, means for rotating said shaft, a plurality of crushing paddles mounted upon and rotated by said shaft and extending longitudinally of said screen in crushing relation therewith, a pair of spaced supports for said paddles secured thereto adjacent their opposite ends, a hub secured to said shaft intermediate said supports having one end secured to one of said supports, and adjustable means on the other end of said hub for securing the other support in angular adjusted position to the first support.

4. A processing machine of the character described comprising a stationary screen annular in cross section and of greater diameter at one end than the other in the form of a truncated cone, a shaft extending axially through said screen, means for driving said shaft, a series of paddles having inwardly and rearwardly extending flanges formed on their outer edges adjacent said screen and equally spaced therefrom, means for adjusting said shaft and paddles longitudinally of said screen for varying the clearance of said paddles while the machine is in operation, means for adjusting the angular position of said paddles with respect to a plane through said shaft, a rigid shell surrounding said screen and conforming in shape thereto, a rigid end piece removably secured to one end of said shell for providing an end thrust bearing for said shaft, an intake end piece secured to the opposite end of said shell, and a toothed crusher member mounted on said shaft between said intake end piece and paddles.

STACEY B. LINDLEY. 

